Mandatory Health Care Worker influenza vaccination has been strongly recommended by us, the directors of the Infectious Disease departments at Waterbury and Saint Mary's hospitals. This patient-safety initiative, which has been implemented at numerous other hospitals in Connecticut and the rest of the country, has been endorsed by the Connecticut Infectious Disease Society and the Connecticut State Medical Society, the Infectious Disease Society of America, the Society of Healthcare Epidemiologists of America, and many other reputable scientific organizations.

Requiring hospital employees and vendors to receive their flu shots is a matter of common sense. It's simply another way to protect the health and safety of our patients and staff.

Influenza is not a disease to be taken lightly. It is severe and lethal, infecting tens of millions people, sickening millions, hospitalizing hundreds of thousands, and killing multiple tens of thousands Americans every year. This is a death rate comparable with motor-vehicle accidents, equal to and exceeding many forms of cancer, and twice the death rate of AIDS.

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